Two of the regions’ most prominent rural Chartered Surveyors, Adam Barrass and David Coulson have joined forces under the banner of Vickers & Barrass to provide comprehensive professional services throughout the North East and Cumbria.

If you have not yet received your Basic Payment for 2017, bridging payments are due to be made on 4th April and should arrive in bank accounts from 6th April. Bridging payments will be based on 75% of the estimated BPS 2017 claim value. If you have not been paid and are expecting a bridging payment, a letter or an email should have been sent to you on Monday (26th March). If the RPA do not have an email for you, it will be sent via letter. As system payments are still being made, this may mean that you could receive a bridging payment letter but your payment may be made by the system in the meantime.

We will be in touch with existing clients in the coming weeks. If you are not an existing client and would like assistance with this year’s application please do not hesitate to contact the team at Vickers and Barrass. The closing date for applications without receiving a penalty is the 15th May 2018.

A reminder that the application window is open! You can apply for up to £10,000 of capital grant to assist in the restoration of dry stone walls. Please contact Pat at Vickers and Barrass as soon as possible if you are interested in making an application. Deadline for applications 30th April.

If anyone was not able to get their copy of last week’s Farmers Weekly, as a thank you to farmers for their contribution to the community during the recent weather conditions, you can access last week’s edition for free on the Farmers Weekly Website.

We have now been made aware that the application window will open on the 13th March until the 15th May. We will be in touch with existing clients in the coming weeks. If you are not an existing client and would like assistance with this year’s application please do not hesitate to contact the team at Vickers and Barrass.

A ten week consultation has opened which aims to allow farmers to voice their opinions on the future of agricultural policy. If you would like to contribute, you can access the online system at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/the-future-for-food-farming-and-the-environment, email agricultureconsultation@defra.gsi.gov.uk or write to Agriculture Consultation Team, 1b - Future Farming Directorate, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Nobel House, 17 Smith Square, London, SW1P 3JR. The deadline for comments is 8 May 2018.

For those who have not yet received their Basic Payment for the 2017 scheme year, the RPA have announced that bridging payments of 75% will be offered to those who have not been paid by the end of March 2018.

On the 17th of January the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2017 (SI 2017/1314) will come into force in England. This regulation has brought a rise of 20% on local authority planning fees. For example the fee for a residential dwelling has increased from £385 to £462. On top of the percentage increase, there has also been a review on the costs of some applications.

The RPA claim that they have paid more than 91% of claimants by the end of December, however we are finding that claim statements and remittance advice are very slow to follow. If you would like us to check that your payment is correct following receipt of the documents, please do not hesitate to contact Vickers and Barrass.

Michael Gove made an announcement at the Oxford Farming Conference on 4th January declaring that Basic Payment Scheme subsidies have been confirmed from the point of leaving the EU up until 2024, although it is not clear at what level. During this 5 year transition period suggested changes include introducing a straight cap at a maximum level or through a sliding scale of reductions, to the largest payments first in order to allow farmers to prepare for the changes.

We are still not aware of the launch date of the mid-tier “simplified” packages that should become available in January 2018. We will provide more information as soon as it becomes available. If you are interested please express your interest as soon as possible.

UPDATE FOR HEDGEROW AND BOUNDARY GRANTS APPLICATIONS 2018Posted on 07 December 2017

Natural England has confirmed the above will be rolled out early in 2018 (although no exact date has been published). The total budget from DEFRA has been increased to £10 million and the maximum grant farmers can apply for has risen to £10,000.

The second phase of the Large Grants Scheme is now available for projects which are linked to adding value to agri-food and improving farm productivity. This is in addition to grants for water resource management and reservoirs and also grants for improving forestry productivity that became available earlier in the year.

FARMERS TO BENEFIT FROM £1.5 MILLION THE PRINCE’S FARM RESILIENCE PROGRAMME FOR SECOND YEARPosted on 28 September 2017

Small farm businesses across Teesdale and Weardale are being invited to take part in the second year of the highly successful The Prince’s Farm Resilience Programme, run by The Prince’s Countryside Fund.

WOODLAND CREATION GRANT- REOPENING FOR APPLICATIONSPosted on 27 September 2017

Woodland Creation- The application window is open from 2 January to 16 February 2018. The woodland creation grant is a standalone capital grant under Countryside Stewardship. Farmers and other land managers can apply for a 2 year capital works programme to plant and protect young trees. If you’re eligible, a supporting maintenance grant of £200 per hectare for 10 years may also be available.

Currently in each agreement year you must submit a payment claim for your multi-year revenue options. A valid payment claim will receive two grant payments, the advance and final payment. This is split 50/50, into two equal payments (subject to any reductions or penalties).

A tremendous day was had by all at National Sheep Association North Sheep yesterday with Vickers and Barrass and Darlington Farmers Auction Mart taking home the prize for best outdoor stand! A special thank you goes to W H Smith & Sons for hosting the event, to Ian Potts of Redburn Farm, Rookhope, John Smith-Jackson of High Town, Melkridge and N G Beveridge of Low West House Farm, Tow Law for providing a spectacular show of sheep on the stand and to Davina Lovegreen Catering for providing the fabulous refreshments.

We are now only a few days from one of the most important sheep events of the years, NSA North Sheep. This is only held in the region every two years and we are absolutely delighted that as major sponsor the event is being held on our doorstep here in Tow Law.

Vickers and Barrass are pleased to be in attendance at Northumberland County Show sponsoring the Young Sheep Handlers Class and Supreme Pedigree Beef Champion Class. We would like to wish everyone good luck during the show season and look forward to welcoming existing and new clients to enjoy our hospitality at our stand located on Row F

BPS claimants are required to abide by the closed period which runs from 1 March to 31 August where cutting and trimming hedges and trees are banned. However derogation can be given in the following circumstances

The 2017 Hedgerow & Boundary applications are still available and the deadline for submitting applications is 28 April 2017. All applications, maps and supporting documents must reach Natural England by this date and late applications will not be considered. Vickers & Barrass have had a very good uptake for this and if you are interested or would like any further guidance please contact the Tow Law office.

The Rural Payments Agency has confirmed that bridging payments will be made to those farmers who have not yet received their BPS 2016 payment from 1 April. When questioned regarding the date “from” the RPA said they would pay 75% of the claim based on the information they held at that date but could not confirm that all outstanding payments would be looked at from 1 April. If you have are still encountering problems regarding your outstanding payment and would like some further help please contact the Tow Law office.

NATIONAL SHEEP ASSOCIATION NORTH SHEEP ANNOUNCES VICKERS & BARRASS WITH DARLINGTON FARMERS AUCTION MART AS MAJOR EVENT SPONSORSPosted on 13 April 2017

The National Sheep Association has announced that the major sponsors for one of the sheep industry’s most important events, NSA North Sheep, will be Tow Law based rural chartered surveyors Vickers & Barrass in conjunction with Darlington Farmers Auction Mart. Returning to County Durham 2017 NSA North Sheep will take place on Wednesday 7 June at West Shields Farm near Tow Law, courtesy of W.H Smith & Sons a family run partnership managed by John Smith alongside his two sons David and Alan and his nephew Jim

Following on from our note that the application window is to open “very shortly”, it opened officially on 10th March. Deadlines for application submissions are 30th September 2017 for Mid-Tier and 5th May for Higher-Tier. If you wish to discuss your eligibility and suitability for Countryside Stewardship please do not hesitate to contact Pat Cotterill.

Natural England continues to promote the Hedgerow and Boundary applications for 2017. Farmers can apply for up to 200m of stone walling and may be eligible to a grant of £5,000 (maximum). There are various other capital items including hedgerow laying and gapping up and this grant is also up to a maximum claim of £5,000. The scheme is competitive and is open to all farmers. If your ELS agreement expires prior to 30 June 2017 then you are eligible to apply. For existing UELS agreement holders which expire this year further confirmation and guidance will be made available from Natural England upon request. For further information please contact Pat Cotterill at the Tow Law office.

The 2017 application window is now open. Vickers and Barrass have a breadth of experience within the area of Common Agricultural Policy Subsidies honing on Pat Cotterill’s past experience working within the Rural Payments Agency.

As we approach the start of BPS 2017 window we understand that applications will be available to submit in early March. Paper applications will only be made available to those who do not use an agent or who applied on paper last year. The Rural Payments Agency are actively encouraging farmers who did not apply online last year to register with them and apply for the 2017 BPS on line. If you have not yet registered with the Rural Payments Agency and you require further assistance with your 2017 application then please contact either Adam Barrass or Pat Cotterill.

EUROPEAN AGRICULTURAL FUND FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT (EAFRD)Posted on 15 February 2017

The Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) for the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) area has been announced. There is grant funding available totalling £9.7 million to businesses in the food processing, tourism and rural business development sectors. Applications are being sought for projects that will create jobs, make the business grow or bring more money into the local rural economy. The capital grants will be made available from the RPA and will fund up to 40% of a projects cost with the minimum amount totalling £35,000. The projects overall costing would need to be over £87,000 to be eligible for the funding. Businesses must be located in rural areas of County Durham, Northumberland and Gateshead or within the North East Rural Growth Network boundary. For further information please contact our Tow Law office or call into the mart office on sale days.

Natural England continues to promote the Hedgerow and Boundary applications for 2017. Farmers can apply for up to 200m of stone walling and may be eligible to a grant of £5,000 (maximum). There are various other capital items including hedgerow laying and gapping up and this grant is also up to a maximum claim of £5,000. The scheme is competitive and is open to all farmers. If your ELS agreement expires prior to 30 June 2017 then you are eligible to apply. For existing UELS agreement holders which are expiring this year further confirmation and guidance will be made available from Natural England upon request. For further information please contact Pat Cotterill at the Tow Law office.

The Rural Payments Agency has recently released a statement in relation to the 2016 Basic Payment Scheme. They state that they have paid 91% of eligible 2016 BPS claims to farmers in December and the RPA are continuing to work on those who have not yet had their 2015 queries resolved.

Just to add further confusion we understand that some farmers have received their 2017 midyear ELS/UELS payment from Natural England. Natural England have until June to make these payments but it appears that some payments “have slipped through” early.

Under the Farming Ammonia Reduction Grant Scheme funding is currently available for self supporting covers for slurry stores and floating covers for slurry stores and lagoons. The grant is only eligible to benefit existing stores.

COMMON LAND BPS CLAIMS- FURTHER GUIDANCE PUBLISHEDPosted on 01 November 2016

The RPA has published further information about the calculation used for common land in relation to BPS 2015 payments. In addition, a common land grazing rights document is now available which gives the total eligible area for each common, the number of Livestock Units declared and the hectares allocated per livestock unit. This document assists in checking BPS 2015 payments on common land as the RPA have not provided a calculation breakdown as was practice within the SPS.

A subsidised broadband installation is now available if you cannot access an affordable broadband service with a speed of at least 2 Mb per second. The government define an affordable service as one that costs no more than £400 a year including installation, equipment and monthly fee.

BPS 2016 OUTSTANDING TRANSFER OF ENTITLEMENTSPosted on 01 November 2016

The RPA are still working through the BPS 2016 entitlement transfers and are aiming to complete all of the outstanding work by end of this month. They have advised that when they have completed the transfer confirmation is sent electronically via your messages on the Rural Payments system. Vickers and Barrass have found this not to be the case and we would advise you to contact the RPA helpline if you have not received confirmation by the end of the month.

The Rural Payments Agency has confirmed they will not be posting a hard copy of your 2015 BPS entitlement statement to you or your agent. They are in the process of developing a system whereby entitlements should be allowed to be viewed on line towards the end of the year. They are also hoping that their system will again allow you to transfer entitlements on line.

The Rural Payments Agency has been sending a large number of BPS 2015 payment corrections statements to clients this week. However it is worth while checking your statements as a number of these new statements have anomalies and the RPA are still making errors to the payments.

Vickers and Barrass were pleased to see Laura graduate (via live stream in the office) from Harper Adams University with a 2:1 degree in BScHons Rural Enterprise and Land Management on Friday 30th September. The Graduation of the Class of 2016 was made more special for Harper Adams through receiving the highest placing modern university in the Sunday Times University Guide the day of graduation.

Up until now we had only received confirmation for funding for agreements signed before 23 November 2016. We now have confirmation that there will be funding for Rural Development agreements after 23rd November up until the point that Brexit takes effect. Where these agreements run beyond the exit from the EU the required funding will be met by the government. This means that funding will be made available for Countryside Stewardship agreements with a start date of 1st January 2017.

DEFRA are making changes to temporary holding numbers (CPH). You don’t need to do anything unless you receive a letter from British Cattle Movement Service. The BCMS are making changes to simplify the rules on reporting livestock movements and some farmers will be able to simplify how their farms are registered. This may reduce the number of livestock movement reports they need to submit. A new 10 mile rule has been introduced which means you will be able to apply to register under the same CPH number all of the land you use within a 10 mile radius. This will cover land that you use permanently or on a temporary basis. All land covered by a single CPH whether permanently or temporary will be treated as part of that CPH for disease testing and restriction purposes. The BCMS are hoping this will significantly reduce the amount of work involved in movement reporting and recording. To merge your CPH numbers you will be asked for the CPH number you wish to merge, the type of livestock you keep, the length and type of tenure (owned or leased). For further information and guidance please see www.gov.uk/government/publications/livestock-movements

From week commencing 12 September the RPA have started to make FDM reimbursement payments. FDM was collected from 2014 SPS payments and a reimbursement will be made to those whose BPS 2015 claim value is in excess of 2,000 euros. The criteria for deducting FDM originally from 2014 SPS payments is different to the criteria for reimbursing it. This means farmers who didn’t have it deducted originally could still qualify for a reimbursement payment. The RPA will be sending a remittance advice which will clearly show the payment is for a FDM reimbursement.If you are in doubt please contact the Tow Law office.

Vickers & Barrass were recently appointed as sole agents for this impressive Grade II listed 6 bedroomed farmhouse situated in a prime location in Northumberland. Highlaws Farm is a renowned mixed stock and arable farm consisting of approximately 121.10 hectares (299.24 acres) of productive pasture and arable land together with 4.04 hectares of woodland all in a ring fence. The farm also benefits from a good range of traditional and modern outbuildings.

Natural England has confirmed they have received further guidance for the Hedgerow & Boundaries capital grant applications which was open earlier this year. Applicants should find out by19 August 2016 if their application has been successful. Anyone who has had an ELS agreement which has expired, you can apply to Natural England for a grant of up to maximum £5000 for walling and hedgerow planting over a 2 year period. A new window for further applications will begin in February 2017. Please note this is a competitive scheme and you application will be scored on an individual bases.

If you have applied to the Rural Payments Agency for derogation to cut/trim hedges during August then you should have received confirmation from them. No cutting or trimming of hedges is allowed during August without this derogation unless for highway safety. Under Cross Compliance rules cutting are allowed from 1 September. In December this year you should complete the Annual Inventory of Sheep, this is compulsory and you may be penalised by the Rural Payments Agency if you fail to complete this form.

Details of the new Countryside Stewardship are still unclear. The deadline for new applications is the end of September but it is not clear if there is sufficient time for applications to be received and processed by the end of November when the Autumn Financial Statement takes place. A spokesperson said “EU funded schemes are vitally important to driving investment in our rural economy and delivering environmental benefits. There is no justifications not to continue with these schemes up until the UK leaves the EU” The statement continues to say they are encouraging members to make applications as this is important to wildlife habitats and the planting of hedgerows must continue.

Natural England has recently written to agreement holders who have ELS and HLS agreements with rotational arable options. This is to inform Natural England where your rotational options are located. These options have to be clearly marked on your claim form which should have been submitted prior to 16 May 2016, however if the location has been changed or you were unsure where the option was going to be then Natural England need to be informed before 1 September 2016. There is further guidance on their website.

Following the UK’s decision to leave the EU there has been a lot of concern and uncertainty regarding future EU funding for farmers. As predicated by Vickers & Barrass the Treasury have announced that farmers will receive funding until 2020. In a recent press release it appears that all funds that would otherwise come from the EU for the years up to and including 2020 that currently pay for Basic Payment Scheme, the greening element and the Young Farmers Top up payment will be met by the UK after withdrawal from the EU.

Away from the office the RPA are sending out letters to claimants who have queried their 2015 Basic Payment Scheme. This letter is now stating that in the next few months they will be reviewing the payment and will let the claimant know. Given that we are now into August and at best it would seem the RPA are going to take two months to look any discrepancy, the likelihood would be that any top up payments or corrections will be made just as the 2016 payment window opens in December for the 2016 payment!

On the 4th August the Bank of England made the decision to lower their base rate from 0.5% down to 0.25%. Along with this they have introduced a package of measures which aim to increase the flow of money within the Economy through increased spending. The package of measures includes the Term Funding Scheme (TFS) which aims to provide banks with close to base rate borrowing to allow the benefits of this reduced rate to help the cut in interest rate more effectively benefit households and firms.The reduction in interest rates and borrowing costs consequently makes investment a more attractive proposition. So how does the change in Bank of England base rate affect the agricultural land market?Agricultural land is seen as a safe haven for investors. The uncertainty that is felt within the economy in the lead up to leaving the EU is likely to support investment in the Agricultural Land Market. This is likely to be the case for the near future until more information is known about future UK trade deals, import and export tariffs and decisions about future farming subsidies. This view is supported by recent market evidence through sales carried out by Vickers and Barrass.

RDPE Funding including Countryside Stewardship Applications. Defra are yet to make a decision regarding ongoing and new RDPE funding. They have confirmed that discussions with the treasury are still ongoing however in the mean time they have clarified that:

516 Acres (208.85 ha) or thereabouts of grazing land available on a Grazing Licence for cattle and sheep from 11 July 2016 to 15 October 2016 for cattle and from 11 July 2016 to 1 March 2017 for sheep.

Vickers and Barrass will be in attendance at Northumberland County Show and Wolsingham Show in conjunction with DFAM and pleased to sponsor Eastgate Sheep Show and Stanhope Show. We would like to wish everyone good luck during the show season and welcome clients to enjoy our hospitality at the Northumberland County and Wolsingham.

Basic Payment Scheme claims for 2016 may be submitted online using the Rural Payment service or you can obtain a BP5 form from the RPA. Hopefully later this week it may be possible to begin the process.

The RPA have made a further 3,472 payments to claimants making a total 61,172 payments (over 70%) on 27 January 2016. The total value of payments made now stands at over £845 million out of an estimated total fund of £1.43 billion (this was £779 million as at 19th January 2016).

From February the land viewer for the 2016 Basic Payment Scheme should be available to view digital maps and aerial photography of clients' land online. Unlike in 2015 land cannot be edited and a RLE1 must still be completed however land can now be transferred online. Maps can be printed for the farmer’s use however this system is only able to print one map at a time instead of large parts of the farm steading on one map. At the current time, the RPA will not post or email out full sets of maps as the Land Parcel Identification System (LPIS, formerly the RLR) is being updated in readiness for the Land Viewer being made available.

Natural England’s payment window is between 31 December 2015 and 30 June 2016 for the environmental stewardship scheme. Claimants should be aware of potential tax issues when gaining payments this is due to payments falling in different tax years or two payments into one tax year.

The LEADER Scheme is a part of the Rural Development Programme for (RPDE) and is funded by the European Agricultural Fund which for Rural Development (EAFRD). Under LEADER, Local Action Groups (LAGs) can allocate funding to local businesses and organisations to help carrying projects which help create jobs in the rural area.

BASIC PAYMENT SCHEME: WHAT IS HAPPENING OVER THE NEXT THREE MONTHS?Posted on 18 November 2015

The Rural Payment Agency (RPA) has received over 88,000 applications for the new Basic Payment Scheme this year. Since all the applications were submitted the RPA have been contacting anyone who they needed additional information from which were missing from their original records. They have also been adding the information from the application forms into their computer system called “Rural Payments”.

AGRI ENVIRONMENT PAYMENT SHOULD START NEXT WEEKPosted on 19 October 2015

Payments of ELS/HLS/OELS/UELS should be starting to reach some client’s bank accounts over the next few weeks but due to the high level of claims Natural England have to process they have until 31 December to make all payments. In a recent press release they have said “Natural England do expect to keep their commitment to make all payments by the end of December”

BASIC PAYMENT SCHEME: NEW GREENING RULES FOR 2016Posted on 30 September 2015

As Harvest once again comes to an end, many arable farmers are currently deciding which crops to sow for next year. The Rural Payment Agency has published the new greening rule guidance for 2016 which explains in great details the correct measures to take when planning for the 2016 Harvest.

From the 1st October 2015 changes are being made regarding the instalment of smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in rental properties. The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 states it is the landlord’s responsibility to ensure that every floor wholly or partly lived in must be fitted with a working smoke alarm and every room which contains a solid fuel burner (open fire) must be fitted with a Carbon Monoxide Alarm.

With the extension to the dates for the submission of the Basic Payment Scheme and Environment Stewardship claim forms earlier this year and IT issues with the Rural Payments Agency, Natural England have issued a statement regarding the ELS/HLS payments.

APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY FOR COUNTRYSIDE STEWARDSHIPPosted on 02 September 2015

The main changes under the Countryside Stewardship is that applications are scored on their criteria; making this scheme competitive. Applicants will have to maximise the environmental priorities which are selected before by Natural England for the location of their land meaning that not all applications will be successful.

A new approach to claim on common land through the Basic Payment Scheme; this principally means the eligible area of the common is divided up amongst common land right holders who are using the common. A farmer who currently has common land rights must demonstrate they are using the common by:

This scheme is open to all ELS agreement holders who have agreements which expire this year, the new scheme is competitive and all applications will be scored by Natural England. Successful applications will be informed by mid-November for a start date of 1 January 2016. Natural England wants to address widespread environmental issues such as water pollution, improving the farmed environment for farmland birds and wild pollinators. Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Packages applied to the land need to cover between 3 – 5 % of your holding.

July marks the start of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS) application window. Applications must be submitted by the end of September 2015 for a start date of 1 January 2016. Detailed information regarding the scheme requirements are yet to be finalised and are subject to change.

The Northumbland County Show will be held on 25 May 2015 at the Bywell Estate and we are all hoping it will by 'dry' this year. Vickers and Barrass are sponsoring the Young Sheep Handlers and the Supreme Pedigree Beef Champion.

The Farming Advice Service (FAS) has published two technical articles giving top tips on meeting the cross compliance requirements for cattle identification and registration rules and sheep and goat identification. Whilst this information is based on the cross compliance regime under SPS in 2014, the information is still useful and relevant for the new cross compliance regime in 2015.

From 1 January 2015 new European Regulations came into force regarding existing Environmental Stewardship Schemes. This entails all ELS/UELS/ OELS and HLS agreement holders to submit an annual claim form to Natural England by 15 May each year for the remainder of your agreement. Further information will be sent to each agreement holder in March this year with details of how to make your annual claim; this will be a separate claim to your Basic Payment Scheme submission. It is vital that your claim is received by Natural England prior to the 15 May as there will be a reduction in your payment of 1% per working day until 9 June. Any claim submitted after 9 June will receive no payment for that year. If you have any queries regarding this please contact Pat Cotterill at the Tow Law office.